Database Users

IS the epic worth it yet?

Im going to be coming over to the Epic from the hero. Just wondering if it is worth it or not yet. I still see there are issues and all, but I dont mind that. As long as samsung is diligently working on a fix. unlike HTC, I hope samsung is a tad better.

mroneeyedboh said:
unlike HTC, I hope samsung is a tad better.
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That's debatable - Samsung's history is not great in fixing things.
That said, as a new Epic owner myself, I do feel like some people are getting a little crazy about a few issues that for most people are going to be relatively minor or even unnoticed. The two issues that come up a lot are GPS and the 3G upload speed. Both of these *seem* to be relatively simple fixes; the GPS issue just seems to be relying on outdated data cache (solution: flush the cache), while the upload speed seems to have been broken with an earlier software update... meaning it should be easy enough for them to fix it again. *Should be* being the key phrase. If Samsung doesn't see the cost benefit from doing so, then they will just keep advertising and selling the phone as is.
In actual practice, I haven't yet run across a situation where these issues have really affected me, though it does annoy me that I can't really do video calling if I wanted to, and that if I shot a video and wanted to directly upload it to YouTube or something, I probably couldn't really do that either. But these are hypotheticals; these are not things I normally do every day. As for GPS, I've been using it for turn-by-turn directions and haven't had any problems, though I know what the problem actually is and that I might run into it at some point. But my dedicated GPS unit had this same issue and I dealt with it for the first year that I owned it (at which point it too received an update... that I paid $80 for).
I'm still in my return window but there isn't really a phone I'd want to return the Epic for. I need a keyboard and the only other phone that really appeals to me is the Droid 2, but I don't want to pay extra for Verizon's plans. So I'll probably just keep the Epic and hope they fix the issues; it's not like they're real killers the way I use the phone. Overall this is a great phone. Sucks up juice a little more than I'd like, but it's insanely fast, has a screen that might even be *too* good (the screen uses most of the battery, and I don't need perfect black levels on my phone), has the best keyboard available on a phone right now, and is generally just a pleasure to use as long as your usage pattern doesn't run into those couple issues it has.

badasscat said:
In actual practice, I haven't yet run across a situation where these issues have really affected me, though it does annoy me that I can't really do video calling if I wanted to, and that if I shot a video and wanted to directly upload it to YouTube or something, I probably couldn't really do that either. But these are hypotheticals; these are not things I normally do every day. As for GPS, I've been using it for turn-by-turn directions and haven't had any problems, though I know what the problem actually is and that I might run into it at some point. But my dedicated GPS unit had this same issue and I dealt with it for the first year that I owned it (at which point it too received an update... that I paid $80 for).
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Why does everyone say that they can't do video calling?
I constantly Fring camchat with my friend on her Evo on 3G. She says the video quality isn't perfect on her end, but its never prevented me from video calling! Even on low bars (1-2 bars) i still can comfortably have a conversation over the webchat.

mroneeyedboh said:
Just wondering if it is worth it or not yet.
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Yes.

Not if u plan on using 4g indoors.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App

I think this phone is great, the gps is good enough but it could be better, I never use the gps inside my house, so I don't really care the indoor, now once I step outside it only takes couple second to lock me.
About the 3g, well I have the same issue but most of the time I'm in a wifi (House, work) so I don't really care about it, but I would be nice if they have some fix to it...I don't get 4g neither in house and work, so don't care about it either.
The I came from the TP2 and just android itself made me jump to this phone, I really hate the keyboard compare to the tp2, so far I haven't use video calling from phone to PC which is what matters to me (please skype hurry up).
The screen on this phone is just great!!! Perfect for movies (not from the Hub, too expensive) I got the movie from my bro hd2 and they look great, now I need to get avatar from my friend I see myself using the phone for movies so much but whenever I want to its totaly worth it.
For games, well its fast! The response to me its awesome, I don't usually play on my phone but I just download a game Caligo Chaser and its a very addictive game (rpg), but the graphics on the game looks very good on the Epic.
I would say keep the Epic, its a good phone, i will be keep her for a good 1 year and that's when my upgrade is due and I'll get a new one, just like I did with my tp2. The problems with the epic are so minimal compare to other phones, every phone that have release will always have problems, and that's how it always will be. I hope sammy won't take too long to fix it tho.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App

You won't notice the gaming difference until you load up toonwarz or another graphically intense game. I believe most 2D games will run the same on most phones with a relatively new processor... though it goes without saying that everything looks great on the SAMOLED screen

Thanks guys. I dont plan on doing any uploading or 4g tethering inside my home. just using the internet at work etc.
Also kinda sucks on the battery life. What are people getting roughly with battery life?
Im also coming from the hero to the epic becuase of the physical keyboard. I cannot stand the lag on hero's keyboard. Is there any lag etc with the physical keyboard?

mroneeyedboh said:
Thanks guys. I dont plan on doing any uploading or 4g tethering inside my home. just using the internet at work etc.
Also kinda sucks on the battery life. What are people getting roughly with battery life?
Im also coming from the hero to the epic becuase of the physical keyboard. I cannot stand the lag on hero's keyboard. Is there any lag etc with the physical keyboard?
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Click to collapse
I came from the Hero as well. Trust me, you'll be satisfied. I was running Darchstar's Cyanogen and whatever the nfiniteFX ROM was on my Hero and I THOUGHT I didn't notice any keyboard lag, but coming to the Epic, I realize I was completely wrong. There is no lag anywhere on this phone as far as I am concerned.

Just what I wanted to hear. haha One thing I did notice is that the hero lags up in general after a while IMO. Does the epic seem to do that so far?

I to came from a Hero, loved that little phone, the Epics screen is just. Insane to say the least. The camera quality to top notch, better than the Evos, I have done personal tests and have seen this. The battery life could be better but with updates those will help, its still a very new phone!

Well it's pretty much the best phone on the market right now. That said, there are issues. Make sure before you take your phone home that the capacitive buttons work. They either do or don't in most cases anyway.
I had 2 bad ones and an evo before switching to this on. Some people including myself have noticed image retention but i think thats a rare issue with the epic. Also the GPS is not good until the froyo update (hopefully). All that aside this is the best phone i have owned. Google Navigation works pretty well though and endomondo tracks very well as well.
I hope this helps.... Like I said i also had the Evo and once you see the Epic screen you wont like anything else. My new one is pretty solid and I 'm happy with it. I just want the flipping update already.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App

mroneeyedboh said:
Also kinda sucks on the battery life. What are people getting roughly with battery life?
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I'm getting about 14 hours with regular use. I could probably stretch that if I needed to. If I use it really heavily, including navigation, I might only get 8-10 hours.
In regular use that's long enough for me to go through a normal day, come home and just start charging it for the night once it gets really low.
But this is the first phone I've owned that I've actually bought a car charger for, just in case. If I see it getting low during the day, I will charge it on my way home from work.
This is not great, but my wife's iPhone is actually worse. She can't make it through a full day no matter what she does. Her phone is charging right now and it's 7:30PM; that's pretty normal for her. With me, it's not a regular thing to do that, it's only if I've been playing with it all day.
Also, like all phones the battery takes a few cycles to show an accurate charge. So when you first get the phone, it seems REALLY bad. I got like 5 hours on my first charge. But over time the gauge gets more accurate and you figure out little tricks to maximizing the battery (like dark wallpaper; bright pixels use a lot more power on an amoled screen), and it improves a lot.

IF Samsung is listening -- Get your act together NOW !

I'm just venting my frustration (and such appologies to the forum moderators) but I do hope someone is listening.
I've had my SGS for about 2 weeks now. For the first time since I'm using _any_ sort of smartphone (many, many moons) these two weeks were constant tinkering, tweaking, lagfixing, trying leaked beta software etc. -- a LOT of frustration, with very little improvement.
So I came to this conclusion: You just cannot polish a turd
So, dear Samsung let me say it straight:
SGS is a POS. Get your act together, you are losing customers in drones. There is a good reason you are far behind HTC -- YOU SUCK
The irony of it all ? It's all in the SW -- the HW platform seems solid, with a good foundation. However, the horrible, horrible things they've done to the OS and -- not the least that HORRID TouchWhiz simply make me cringe. Personally, I would fire the project manager responsible for this abomination with a geostationary rocket.
In my personal case I've got this phone from work -- there is no chance in hell I would have handed out my hard earned cash for this POS. If, in a moment of insanity, I would have ever done so, not later than the day after I would be prompt back at my local Samsung rep and told them to stick that phone somewhere special and ask for a full refund then and there.
(Again, sincere appologies to the forum moderators -- I hope I am not breaching forum posting rules. At least not too many )

Not quite sure where your happy or content place is with your sgs but mine is with JH2 and the OCLF V2. Providing it doesn't blow up on me I think I could deal with this for a while. I feel your frustration though, the quest for perfection can certainly be less than gratifying.
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App

HTC also have their problems as well.

There is no perfect phone.
I owned TONS of smartphones, most by HTC: the ALL had issues.
In fact i moved away from HTC after the EVO Fiasco if the bad hardware build, 30fps cap after trying the N1 which that CHEAP screen!
There is no perfect phone. deal with it.

iphone is perfect except for restrictions on it by apple

hatin it how samsung keeps moving froyo release date

TS has a point
The topic starter has a point. Coming from a HTC Desire, you clearly experience the poor software. The HTC Desire works far better out of the box. I got my hands on a SGS through swapping providers, otherwise i would have stuck with HTC Desire.
On the other hand, its starting to grow on me, and i expect the Froyo update to make it much better (as it did to the Desire also i must admit).

salmanslick said:
iphone is perfect except for restrictions on it by apple
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Then is it not perfect

So go tell Samsung directly if you want them to hear.. There are enough threads with people whinging, so if anything, this is a dupe.
Also, losing customers in drones? Really?? HAHAHAHAHA. Have you got any evidence for that claim? The only customers being lost seem to be at XDA, and some of them are overanalysing, such as the people who were whinging about GPS, have been saying "the iphone wouldn't have that problem", and yet, people have produced tracks which suggests it does. And "lag" is apparently no worse than previous generation devices, it certainly doesn't make the device "unusable" as many exaggerators have claimed
There are problems with every device... The question, is how much the user tries to train themselves to be annoyed by a problem.. On OSX for instance, I'd notice when a program crashed, users don't care.. But on Windows, people almost throw their keyboard

dial to get latest news on froyo from samsung:
1-800-ef-kay-samsung

FlorianO said:
In my personal case I've got this phone from work -- there is no chance in hell I would have handed out my hard earned cash for this POS. If, in a moment of insanity, I would have ever done so, not later than the day after I would be prompt back at my local Samsung rep and told them to stick that phone somewhere special and ask for a full refund then and there.
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Click to collapse
Lucky you... I was one of those who did hand out hard earned for this POS... and its going to cost me even more to rectify my problem and do what I should have done in the first place: chose the iphone.
If it wasn't for this forum, I probably would have dropped it down the toilet.

Touchwiz is easily replaced with better options from the Market. There's not a single Android device sold today that have a better Launcher than a couple of the ones on the Market IMO, and it's easy to replace the stock one. + for Android.
In my mind there is only 1 huge problem with this phone, and that is the RFS filesystem that causes lag.
GPS is an issue as well, but nothing major. It works well enough for most people.
Other than these 2 issues, this phone is awesome.

This is the best phone I have ever bought. If it was stolen, I would but another one for sure. I an not sure why you are going nuts about it, but I am sure that types like you whiners would go crazy about a "prefect" iphone (lol) as well!
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

My mates with Iphones do not have the same gps problems as I do. If I geocache with them my gps jumps wildly and cannot in many cases get me close enough to find something. The iphones haven't had any problems, though appear to have worse accuracy "in general". I think when the gps is fixed it will be heaps more accurate, but it's fluctuation now makes it virtually useless.
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA App

salmanslick said:
iphone is perfect except for restrictions on it by apple
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Click to collapse
Not really http://discussions.info.apple.com/forum.jspa?forumID=1139

I've spent the last 4 months looking for a good phone after having an iphone 3G which once jailbroken was superb but I got bored of it in the end and the battery life was terrible.
I had the Dell Streak which I got rid of because I didnt like Dells silence over the 2.1 update or the US launch and in all honesty its a bit big.
I sold the streak and got a cheap sony x10 mini pro which was a really nice little phone even though it was on 1.6 with no definate date for upgrade and when someone on here wanted to trade his HTC Desire for it I jumped at the chance.
The Desire was really good solid build stock 2.2 was very good but sense annoyed me and slowed the phone down. Multi touch was terrible. the desire cant even do 2 point touch properly let alone five like the SGS. This made playing games impossible and the HTC bluetooth stack is borked so it doesnt support wiiremotes unless you flash opendesire.
So I sold that and got an SGS for £9 more off ebay and I like it
I've had my SGS for 2 days now. It was on 2.1 JF3 when I got it so I rooted it and put on the lag fix. It was still under performing so I put the newest build of 2.2 on the JPK thing. installed launcher pro which is the closest to stock 2.2 I've found.
Although its still an early version it flies. I think people have to keep the faith a bit. Companies are terrible at shipping devices to market too early just to beat the competition. I think thats happened alot this year.
There isnt a single perfect Android device out there right now and if your after perfection you really shouldnt consider android. Its great for geeks like me who like to tinker. If thats not you then go get a nokia or an iphone.

I even registered for this
I own a SGS my wife owns an iPhone4. I feel my phone is significantly better, despite my wife's phone costing significantly more.
The iphone is not perfect...things I dont like
1. They do not yet have a free satnav app.
2. You cannot email more than one photo at the same time.
3. Does not have swype
4. Smaller screen
5. No back button (top left corner of screen always has to have a back button)
6. You have to pay extra for everything (ring tones etc.)
7. SGS is much more resistant to drop based damage
8. No customisable home screen for regularly used functions which occasionally are multi-level deep in an iPhone
9. No removable storage
10. No chance of a flash browser...
Do not get me wrong the iPhone 4 is an exceptionally good phone, but the SGS IMO is better and cheaper!
Additionally I have noticed my battery lasts a day longer than my wife's (completely unscientific testing though).
For balance I will point out the things on my wife's phone that are superior to SGS
1. Camera has a flash (the flash is not great, but it is better than nothing).
2. The text rendering is superior
3. The safari touch screen movement is superior (difficult to explain why you need to use both to appreciate what I mean)
My wife's iPhone 4 regularly (approx twice weekly) asks her to re-enter the wifi security code for our house, that bug to me is far more annoying than anything I have experienced on my phone so far.

Great!
Tesmond said:
I own a SGS my wife owns an iPhone4. I feel my phone is significantly better, despite my wife's phone costing significantly more.
The iphone is not perfect...things I dont like
1. They do not yet have a free satnav app.
2. You cannot email more than one photo at the same time.
3. Does not have swype
4. Smaller screen
5. No back button (top left corner of screen always has to have a back button)
6. You have to pay extra for everything (ring tones etc.)
7. SGS is much more resistant to drop based damage
8. No customisable home screen for regularly used functions which occasionally are multi-level deep in an iPhone
9. No removable storage
10. No chance of a flash browser...
Do not get me wrong the iPhone 4 is an exceptionally good phone, but the SGS IMO is better and cheaper!
Additionally I have noticed my battery lasts a day longer than my wife's (completely unscientific testing though).
For balance I will point out the things on my wife's phone that are superior to SGS
1. Camera has a flash (the flash is not great, but it is better than nothing).
2. The text rendering is superior
3. The safari touch screen movement is superior (difficult to explain why you need to use both to appreciate what I mean)
My wife's iPhone 4 regularly (approx twice weekly) asks her to re-enter the wifi security code for our house, that bug to me is far more annoying than anything I have experienced on my phone so far.
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Welcome to the community.
Excelent post.
Congratulations and thank you for the analysis.

nCoder said:
Welcome to the community.
Excelent post.
Congratulations and thank you for the analysis.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
music on iphone sounds way better than sgs.

Tesmond said:
1. They do not yet have a free satnav app.
2. You cannot email more than one photo at the same time.
3. Does not have swype
4. Smaller screen
5. No back button (top left corner of screen always has to have a back button)
6. You have to pay extra for everything (ring tones etc.)
7. SGS is much more resistant to drop based damage
8. No customisable home screen for regularly used functions which occasionally are multi-level deep in an iPhone
9. No removable storage
10. No chance of a flash browser...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. True, but there are cheap ones. Google navigation works terribly for me, so the SGS may as well not have one TBH. I've got no doubt its the phone not the program thats causing this. Clearly other people dont have this problem though.
2. No big deal for me or most people for that matter, but fair point.
3. True - I'll miss swype when I go back to the iphone. That said swype isnt perfect either - its often putting the wrong word in for me and i'm having to go back correcting the errors.
4. True... but its sharper and not pentile. I think the screens are a draw for me.
5. True, but it doesn't really need one IMO.
6. True - but not bothered.
7. I can imagine.
8. Yes, but then its rare you need to. Main thing I'd like to see is a button for airplane mode and to keep the screen on, but I can live with it.
9. True but it does have a lot of storage built in. Not a big deal for me.
10. To be honest the importance of this is overstated - when I've witnessed flash running on a phone it often slows to a crawl anyway.
Tesmond said:
Do not get me wrong the iPhone 4 is an exceptionally good phone, but the SGS IMO is better and cheaper!
Additionally I have noticed my battery lasts a day longer than my wife's (completely unscientific testing though).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wouldnt say the SGS is better. It lags, is full of bugs and the GPS doesn't work at all for many people. The build quality is questionable (though I dont mind).
However, you really have to be joking about the battery? My mate has an iphone 4, and the battery life is not just slightly better on his, it is STAGGERINGLY better. We are both heavy users, and his is easily double what mine can do on the battery. If your partners iphone 4 battery does not last longer than your SGS, I'd say hers is faulty, TBH.
Tesmond said:
For balance I will point out the things on my wife's phone that are superior to SGS
1. Camera has a flash (the flash is not great, but it is better than nothing).
2. The text rendering is superior
3. The safari touch screen movement is superior (difficult to explain why you need to use both to appreciate what I mean)
My wife's iPhone 4 regularly (approx twice weekly) asks her to re-enter the wifi security code for our house, that bug to me is far more annoying than anything I have experienced on my phone so far.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. Not only does it have a flash, it is also FAR superior in terms of picture quality. Again, first hand experience. The SGS camera is acceptable, nothing more. The iphone camera has better sensors etc, and is actually almost as good as a compact dedicated camera from a few years ago.
2. Agreed
3. Again, agreed - even the original iphone moves around the screen better than the SGS (or any Android phone).
Now a few you forgot...
4. It runs faster - a LOT faster. Even if you lag fix an SGS, it STILL doesn't run as fast. Then again even a 1 year old Nexus One outperforms the SGS (but again, not the iphone 4).
5. Less buggy - this surely cannot be denied.
6. MUCH better apps
7. GPS actually works
8. Looks nicer
9. Far, FAR better battery life - I don't know how anyone can really say otherwise.
10. Updating it doesn't result in you having to spend an hour reinstalling apps without the aid of a (paid) backup app.
11. Resale value, come the day, will be FAR superior. In the UK, we have phone recycling sites (which no doubt, so will you)... and already the maximum price you can get for the SGS is around £115. That is APPALLING. You can STILL get £190 for a 2 year old iphone 3G. Big deal, you may think, but for me, this more than offsets the extra cost of the phone. In actual fact, a 16Gb SGS was £550 when it came out in the UK, £50 MORE than the iphone. Yet, in a years time, when you want to sell it, you'll still get £350 for the iphone, but you'll probably be lucky to get much more than £100 for the SGS, so TCO the iphone is actually significantly cheaper.
As for your wifi bug, again, I'd say that was a faulty phone - I certainly never had that problem with my 3G.
Also, if your iphone gets faulty, then Apple will replace it there and then. I wouldn't like to imagine what would happen if I sent it to Samsung given their dire customer service in this country.
Don't get me wrong, I'm no iphone fanboy, if I was, there would only have been one choice for me, but you're pushing it saying the SGS is better and cheaper, because frankly, it's only better on paper. In reality, its very different.

All Evo Shift 4G owners please read and respond

I am looking at purchasing a Shift 4G for my mom to upgrade her from her POS blackberry. I currently have the Big Brother to the Shift (the Supersonic), and absolutely love it, I won't give it up for anything, but my mom would be more suited to an iPhone, however sprint doesn't have the iPhone, and I get a 23% discount through my job.
Could several people respond about the Shift please:
1. Average battery life (moderate usage)
2. Size and Feel of the phone for day to day use
3. How does the keyboard feel for texting
4. How smooth does this redesigned Sense OS feel
5. How well does the camera operate
6. Does the screen size feel ok if you use the touchscreen instead of the slideout KB.
I would prefer non-rooted people to respond to these since I won't be rooting her phone. I want to hear all responses both good, and bad.

So you want us to do the research for you?
^ Shift Faced

Lol yup. Go to the store and play with one. Read the reviews online.

I have my phone rooted but nothing major done to it..even rooting it was easy under the right posts and take from here and there and waa laa it worked great, however; i love this phone..a lot..my first android was a G1 and second a Hero(CDMA) and now this..I have been trying to find something more like the G1..The hero felt like a downgrade and now this phone excites me about the new frontier of android. I OC'd my hero with no avail and to be out performed by phones like the droid and ah whatever..it seems to me this phone is the benchmark of performance and as for your questions:
1. I feel as though I get about 12 hours..when I use it to play games and stuff maybe 6-8
2. I enjoy the keyboard..both physical KB and onscreen..I use both cause I came from a hero with no physical kb but i really like both
3. both KB's work great on texting..i prefer the physical for when I have longer messages to write because its faster IMO, even so the virtual has no lag either.
4. Compared to the Sense UI from the Hero this phone is a HUGE improvement..when I first got my phone I was really impressed with the improvements to the UI because it seemed HTC logged on XDA and got all of our gripes then fixed them
5. I finally used the camera this weekend to take pictures for making invitations to my son's birthday party and I was impressed with the facial recognition. Its 5MP so its no Cannon or Sony but it still does a great job with facial recognition and all
6. As I said earlier I use both and the I have no problem with the screen size interfering with the kb..

The phone feels perfect in your hand. Almost like your holding something other than a phone. The sense UI is great, very smooth and fast. The camera also is great. The still picture quality could be improved if you want to be nit picky, however 720p recording is so amazing. The hardware keyboard is very nice and fast as well. I like it better than my blackberry tour. I would recommend this phone to anyone, anyplace, anytime.

I also have evo, and also was considering picking up a shift for my mom (she has a Samsung moment that is barely functional), I went into sprint store and was able to play with one just a little bit. Was not that impressed, sadly (and I'm a big HTC fan).
Mostly, I felt the HW keyboard was almost unusable (I kept mashing multiple buttons at the same time), yet the HW keyboard is what I thought was supposed to be the attraction to otherwise would-be evo buyers.
As for OP 'wanting others to do his research for him', that's not the case at all, he wants to hear from people who have had more than just a few moments with the shift. Give the guy a break.
***maybe I just can't type well- yet I have no issues typing on my evo ****
Sent from my virus infected and nuggified evo using XDA App

I ordered the Shift ready to exchange it for an Evo at the drop of a hat if I didn't like it, but after a while I'm really happy with this phone. It really doesn't get enough credit for how good it is.
The battery life is good enough that I can use it for moderate-heavy use of texting and internet and still have 1/4 of the battery left at the end of the day. I haven't ever used the 4G though, and I imagine that would change things up.
I came a from a Hero, and the Shift is slightly thicker and taller. It feels pretty sturdy, similar to a Droid. If you're looking for iPhone aesthetic you might be disappointed here.
Not a big fan of the keyboard, or keyboards in general really, so I can't really judge this. I find myself using the on-screen KB most of the time, and it works great. If you're curious, the sliding mechanism is the same used in the Droid and not like the G2's snap out hinge. Definitely prefer this, as the keyboard usually stays shut.
As it happens I don't really like Sense either, but it seems to operate the same as it did on the Hero (and probably the Evo.) It's fast and the widgets are cool, so if you like Sense then I guess you'll really dig it. Myself, I'll take Launcher Pro any day.
The camera is really excellent for a phone. Pictures are taken as fast as an iPhone and saved to your SD before you know it. Image quality isn't amazing and the flash function is sorta just there, but this is to be expected.
I'm really happy with this phone. While I would have preferred a Shift without a keyboard, I'm not at all bothered.

I don't have the time to give a lot of info, but I was really surprised last night.
My phone had been unplugged for almost 24 hours, with average (working most of the day) not heavy as normal usage, and i still had 40% battery left.
Coming from the Moment, this phone is so amazing. And even after seeing how my girlfriend's rooted Evo works, it's still pretty amazing.

herbthehammer said:
Lol yup. Go to the store and play with one. Read the reviews online.
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Click to collapse
I have gone to the store and played with it, I have had my mom check it out as well, she said it seemed ok, I thought it felt like crap, the slider was stiff, the screen didnt rotate to adjust for the keyboard being kicked out. I had these issues with it on 3 different display models at 2 different stores (one sprint store, one best buy), Which is why I asked the new shift community to chime in, if it was left up to my impression at the store, i would say the phone is a piece of **** that shouldn't be sold to consumers. However I doubt that is the case, and I wanted feedback from people who already own one.

Khilbron said:
I am looking at purchasing a Shift 4G for my mom to upgrade her from her POS blackberry. I currently have the Big Brother to the Shift (the Supersonic), and absolutely love it, I won't give it up for anything, but my mom would be more suited to an iPhone, however sprint doesn't have the iPhone, and I get a 23% discount through my job.
Could several people respond about the Shift please:
1. Average battery life (moderate usage)
2. Size and Feel of the phone for day to day use
3. How does the keyboard feel for texting
4. How smooth does this redesigned Sense OS feel
5. How well does the camera operate
6. Does the screen size feel ok if you use the touchscreen instead of the slideout KB.
I would prefer non-rooted people to respond to these since I won't be rooting her phone. I want to hear all responses both good, and bad.
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have you read anything in these forums at all? wtf

Khilbron said:
I have gone to the store and played with it, I have had my mom check it out as well, she said it seemed ok, I thought it felt like crap, the slider was stiff, the screen didnt rotate to adjust for the keyboard being kicked out. I had these issues with it on 3 different display models at 2 different stores (one sprint store, one best buy), Which is why I asked the new shift community to chime in, if it was left up to my impression at the store, i would say the phone is a piece of **** that shouldn't be sold to consumers. However I doubt that is the case, and I wanted feedback from people who already own one.
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the slider is stiff in the store probably due to the protective plastic still being around the keyboard. Otherwise it's very nice (except mine, which is really loose).
The screen rotates just fine when the keyboard is opened. It takes a half-second, but it rotates on all screens, except perhaps the facebook app.
I would actually say this phone is similar build quality to the evo, if not better. It's also the smaller form, which many people like. Not to mention the fact that it has more potential to be OC'd and if the dev's can figure it out, the potential to be a major powerhouse.

foxsdaddy67 said:
have you read anything in these forums at all? wtf
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Click to collapse
*sarcasm* No of course I haven't *sarcasm*, however I don't think you have, the first 7 pages of this 11 page subforum are filled with people complaining about broken hinges, bad sliders, charging problems, ect... which is why I put this thread up, I want to see the positive feedback, I want a reason to buy this phone as a gift for my mother. Generally the praise is left out of the forums, and the help me this is Borked takes over. I Love HTC phones, and as I am sitting I don't have a good reason to select this phone for her or go el cheapo and get her an optimus or an intercept.

First off, I think the EVO is a solid device...one of the few on Sprint.
I really like the EVO Shift better. It has a 2nd generation processor in it so it's slightly faster than the regular EVO w/being on a stock rom. I have not done it but heard it's a beast running the modified over clocked kernel.
Keyboard does get some getting used to, and I find myself using the on-screen keyboard for short text messages and the hardware keyboard on longer emails. HTC is know for durability and extended life (compared to other *cough* Kyocera) so I'm not too worried about the keyboard being extended.
I love to hate Sense UI...there are some features that are amazing and other's that just...well, yack.
The volume key's are always getting in my way, but I just have to "de-program" myself and get used to it. I've only had the Shift for a couple days, so I'll let my body catch up.
Did I mention how fast this device is? That is...even running stock!
I haven't heard it mentioned but I think the battery cover is a nuisance and feels cheap. If I had to do a sliding scale scoring on this device, without any industry experience, I would give it a 8/10 - from a consumer review

Mom, grandma, aunt, female cousin, sister, daughter, niece...when will the madness end? Boys and men, start buying these phones for yourselves!

foxsdaddy67 said:
have you read anything in these forums at all? wtf
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Exactly what I was thinking. Do some research for yourself.
powered by the tears of a million orphaned alpacas...

I've said it before and I will say it again. A decent android phone that wont break the bank or make you pay the extra ten bucks a month and for someone that isn't a power user is the LG optimus.
Yeah going from a moment to a shift is, form factor wise, about the same so there wouldn't be much to adjust to operating differently besides no cursor button.
Knowing what I do now, if I couldn't afford a top tier phone and monthly bill, I'd go with the little LG. People are giving it very good ratings on sprint's site.
With the screen not going landscape, maybe in screen settings it was turned off. Plus people probably install all kinds of crap on the display phones it bogs it down and lags terribly.

herbthehammer said:
I've said it before and I will say it again. A decent android phone that wont break the bank or make you pay the extra ten bucks a month and for someone that isn't a power user is the LG optimus
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All new smartphone activations will have the $10 fee now, you might as well get a 4G phone.
Sent from my HTC Evo Shift 4G using the XDA app.

wardfan220 said:
All new smartphone activations will have the $10 fee now, you might as well get a 4G phone.
Sent from my HTC Evo Shift 4G using the XDA app.
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So regardless if the phone is 4g or not, they are gonna charge an extra ten bucks a month?

herbthehammer said:
So regardless if the phone is 4g or not, they are gonna charge an extra ten bucks a month?
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Yup. There is a post here about it somewhere. I'm in my phone so I don't have a link atm.
Sent from my HTC Evo Shift 4G using the XDA app.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/18/sprint-data-plan-fees_n_810279.html
^ Shift Faced

Post reasons why you like the Atrix!

All these hater threads being posted about "I'm returning the Atrix" , "The Atrix Screen is horrible" and "The Atrix doesn't do this..." I decided to show this device some love. We all know it's an electronic device/phone first and sometimes things are broken or just not working right...I get that! However, let's not let the VERY FEW bad things out weigh the MANY GOOD things about the Atrix. Let's enjoy our new toy and give props when props is due.
So I wanted to start this thread for people like myself to post reasons why you bought the Atrix, what you like about it and why you might decide to keep it past your 3o day return period.
I'll go first:
What I like about the Atrix is the sleekness of it. The light weight feel in the hand. and The snappiness of it. One of the reasons I think I may keep the Atrix past my 30 day period is because I feel that if Motorola does allow the bootloader to be unlocked the devs will make this phone one of the most powerful devices out if used to the best of it's ability. And if they don't release the bootloader, I'll still be happy with it and still keep it.

I like that I don't have to have a charger at my desk, car, home desk, couch, night stand, etc. the battery life is great for me.
I like that the screen practically fills the face. I like the resolution and crispness.
I love the form factor. I like how it fits in my hand, the placement of the fingerprint sensor works perfect for me.I like that it's light but doesn't feel cheap or fragile.
I like that it's not tied to a pc like my iphone.
I love how fast it is, I have no issues with lag or un responsiveness.
I love that it isn't an iphone. I like iphones..I love my atrix
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

Ill join in.
I love the weight of this phone, its not heavy like most other phones. Its more like what you expect it to be like.
The phone fits your hand VERY well. The finger print reader is positioned so that if you cradle the phone correctly, your index finger is resting on the finger print reader a good portion of the time.
I have yet to have any problems of this phone slowing down.
The battery life is AMAZING! Now I might not be the uber smartphone user that has the phone in front of his/her face 24/7 (driving/walking down halls running into people) but I still use this phone a lot and it easily lasts a full day on 1 charge.
The screen is perfect, everyone saying that the screen sucks need to wait till software comes out that utilizes this resolution. A good 90% of the stuff on the market right now was not made for the resolution on this phone. Also the real estate of this screen is amazing. They utilized all the screen space they could on this phone.
I will also be keeping this phone past the 30 day return period since I feel that the phone flat out works right out of the box. Yea a custom rom would be cool but this phone does everything I need it to do and more without breaking a sweat.
+1 for the Atrix

I really love the battery life. I got home from work tonight at 6:30 and still had 50% and I used it a ton today.
Speed. Silly speed for days. I've not seen any of the lag I hear about and it never locks up on me.
Games are insanely good, especially Tegrazone approved games. Samurai 2 and Dungeon Defenders is sick.
I dig the size and weight. It doesn't feel like a brick in my pocket.
Love the fingerprint reader as unlock.
The screen is fantastic and realistic.
Camcorder has taken some really great videos for me. I recorded almost an entire live concert with it from the send row and it looks and sounds fantastic. I recorded from the car dock to test it and at 45mph the video was crisp and didnt' stutter.
The car dock owns.
This one even surprises me: I don't hate blur. Yes, I said it.
I like the blur widget options along with the standard Android widgets. I find that with the power of the phone that blur doesn't offer any slow down. I wouldn't like it with a 528mhz processor, but it screams on the Atrix so I'm good with it.

Wow, it is nice to see a thread in which people want to say positive things!
Just to add to what everyone has already said (I'm a big fan).
I already love the device. If the bootloader is ever unlocked... holy 'smokes'... it will just be like another christmas - in the middle of the year.

no dropped calls
better signal (probably helps the no dropped calls stat too)
much better battery life
good hi def screen
great speaker
fast as hell

The Bishop said:
no dropped calls
better signal (probably helps the no dropped calls stat too)
much better battery life
good hi def screen
great speaker
fast as hell
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I like having alerts, ringtones, and battery life as proficient as blackberrys.

acPIZZA said:
Wow, it is nice to see a thread in which people want to say positive things
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I know right....I got tired of seeing all these negative threads about people returning the phone, they expected certain features that's not here so they're gonna return the phone etc. It was getting crazy.
Sent from my MB860 using Tapatalk

I love how i dont have to root it to to get rid of the lag isues tht other phones have.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA App

This is my first smart phone, so I have no prior experience to compare my Atrix experience to. Because of my lack of experience with such devices, I know I am not taxing it, putting it through the rigorous paces that others do, or even utilizing much of its potential. But I like it, and I'm pleased with it.
It is very light, easy to pocket, and it fits my hands well. Sheathed in the Body Glove Mirage TPU case, it is secure in my grasp.
It has a great screen. Even small text in web pages is crisp and readable.
I love having an internet browser with me all the time. I used it today in my garden to look up information on soil preparation.
Texting on this phone is a dream. It has a great virtual keyboard. The screen is wonderfully sensitive to a quick and light touch, which makes typing very fast and accurate.
The phone is fast and delightfully responsive. There is virtually no latency when accessing menus and apps.
The battery life is excellent. I can use it all day without running it down completely. Recharging overnight is all that's needed.

LOVE my Atrix
FAST, absolutely no lag, 1 gig of RAM, great quality construction, GREAT screen despite what others think (just look at a hi res video), a pleasure to play with!!

The phone is great out of the box compared to how the Captivate was. This phone is a smartphone on steroids. Plenty of power, RAM, and internal storage for applications for daily use. The fingerprint lockscreen is pretty nifty. 4in is the perfect size in my opinion and the phone is nice and loud.
The drawbacks are the screen isn't as good as SAMOLED, Motoblur is kind of a bummer, and white notification bar is annoying. I am really nitpicking but there isn't too much to complain about the phone.

ok honestly, i just got mine yesterday and didn't see any of the complaints that people are making about it that would make somebody wanna return it, either u got a defective device or u just complain entirely too much(easy fix, return it for another one that works duh). they talking about speed test this and that compared to the iphone/inspire/evo/etc. but no phone is perfect and honestly this phone is better then all of them. Yea it's running motorola Blur, but motorola blur isn't bad at all, the phone that made it look bad was that weak backflip that had sooooo many bugs, i kno cause my sis has it. Another thing, people are complaining about the bootloader, the devs are currently working hard to crack it, and very soon will from looking at their thread. Just wait til this thing is rooted, it's gonna shock a lot of people that returned it for these future phones that come out, so please(not everybody) stop complaining so much and making people seem like this phone is horrible just because u don't like it and it's not 2 seconds faster then your ROOTED device or inspire, u may just have a defective device......
sorri about the rant but after playing with this phone for a day it kinda frustrated me seeing people giving up on this phone soooo quickly, but i like everything about the phone nothing has disappointed me yet

Coming from a (stock) Nexus One that was the best phone I EVER used, this phone is:
- sexier
- faster
- lasting longer
- much nicer to watch videos on
- impossible to fill up with apps (!!!)
It is in general an awesome phone! Sure, glitches here & there, however nothing that will not be fixed in an imminent update.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App

G1-8701 said:
sorri about the rant but after playing with this phone for a day it kinda frustrated me seeing people giving up on this phone soooo quickly, but i like everything about the phone nothing has disappointed me yet
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+1; I understand Motorola has a history of locking down their phones, and the Xoom is a different device entirely...but the fact they're giving that the option of a lockable/unlockable bootloader gives me some hope.
It took some time for the Captivate development to take off, but once people were able to utilize i9000 ROMs/kernels, there were a ton of ROM/kernel options, and almost all of those piggybacked i9000 development from people outside of the United States. So I'm planning on sticking with this phone for a while, unless the Atrix part of the XDA forums here becomes a desolate wasteland and the phone gets abandoned. As somebody mentioned in another thread, once this phone comes out on different carriers in different countries, there should be a lot more people plugging away on the development side.
That said, I love the hardware portions of this phone; it feels solid, the battery cover looks nice, the camera is fantastic, the GPS works great, the screen is solid (if not spectacular, yet), I missed having a flash on my camera and LED notifications, and even with the Motoblur bloat still there...it's snappy.

battery life, battery life, battery life. and did i mention battery life?
over 40 hours on my last charge. im pressed.
i was thinking about returning due to locked bootloader......but the fact of the matter is, i can still do far more customization to this phone with a locked bootloader than i could on a jailbroken iphone (what i came from). i loved the roms/kernels for the captivate that i had for 3 weeks, but even with that phone supercustomized and overclocked, it still didnt perform as well as the atrix.

I like when chicks see me with this badass phone. I usually get laid. This phone is a chick magnet.

D1rk said:
I like when chicks see me with this badass phone. I usually get laid. This phone is a chick magnet.
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Funny as hell...lmao...Good Post!

I'd like to second everyones opinions about the phone. Coming from a iphone 3g ill never go back. I believe when froyo catches up with better apps to support the atrix's dual cores's and att finally upgrades there cell towers' and the phone has only been out for a little more then 2 weeks I'm sure the devs here need more time to play around with the phone. As I'm not rooting yet ill wait for the gingerbread update and att to upgrade there cell towers before I start rooting. But anyway back to subject I am very pleased with the phone as I agree with all comments that members have posted about the positive things.
Ps. I am pleased to live beside a att cell tower mainantance worker and he has said that middle-eastern southern U.S. towers will be updated to the LTE network no later than this years 2nd quarter and he also made a comment about att working with verizon getting everything going?? But he couldn't provided any hard prof.
Now my fingers hurt thanks swype.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App

First of all, I've never used a phone that some people didn't hate. The Atrix is the best Android phone. It beats the Nexus S and it beats the oversized, overhyped Desire HD. It beats all the plastic Samsungs. The form factor is perfect. The weight and balance are perfect. The screen is excellent. Call quality is excellent. I like it. I write about smartphones and I use them all. This beats all Androids as far as I'm concerned. And like all Androids, it isn't a boring iPhone, and let's face it that is a boring device.

Worth switching to DVP from a HTC G2?

Been looking to get a Streak 7 again now that Honeycomb is on it officially, and I was thinking about having a little diversity and getting a Windows phone to supplement it. I'm limited to phones with keyboards (can't stand touchscreen keyboards) and T-Mobile (loving the $30 "Walmart" plan). And personally, I think it'd be cool to have a phone and a tablet both by the same company and in Otterbox cases
Anyway, over a HTC G2 - are there any major features/flaws the DVP has over it? I've read that the compass doesn't work, and Wifi hotspot may not ever come to it, but neither really matters to me - what I care mostly about is getting a decent signal, the keyboard, being able to sync my Gmail contacts, and being able to surf the web - without slowdowns/bugs/crashes/etc. and whatnot. Not that my G2 is bad, but it could be better.
Also, what's the battery life like? And how does the screen do outdoors (and if badly, is there a good screen protector to alleviate it)?

The G2 is s great phone but is now very dated. I've had a few of them. Battery life is terrible but there is great dev for it!!
Sent from my MB501 using XDA Premium App

magiconthetire said:
The G2 is s great phone but is now very dated. I've had a few of them. Battery life is terrible but there is great dev for it!!
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So...is the DVP any better?

I had the G2 for a while. I have to say that I do love my DVP. The keyboard took some getting used to, but now my fingers just fly right through that thing. The browser is good. It's a typical smartphone browser, but it has never crashed on me or been buggy. I absolutely love the way it looks and the fact that portrait sliders are unique. Over the new phones that are coming out, I wouldn't pick this one, but over the G2? I'd definitely pick this phone if you aren't in to the hotspot, compass and all the apps and stuff Android has. But that's a WP7 thing I guess.

sur3nd1p1ty said:
I had the G2 for a while. I have to say that I do love my DVP. The keyboard took some getting used to, but now my fingers just fly right through that thing. The browser is good. It's a typical smartphone browser, but it has never crashed on me or been buggy. I absolutely love the way it looks and the fact that portrait sliders are unique. Over the new phones that are coming out, I wouldn't pick this one, but over the G2? I'd definitely pick this phone if you aren't in to the hotspot, compass and all the apps and stuff Android has. But that's a WP7 thing I guess.
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Well AFAIK the DVP is the only Windows phone both with a physical keyboard and compatible with with T-Mobile, and my other options would be either a Nokia E7 (well-built slider that looks like the G2 with a nice camera and screen) or Nokia E6 (BB-type phone with nice feature set), but I'm completely unfamiliar with Symbian (not that I'm familiar with Windows phones), and I'd mostly be getting either Nokia for being true world-phones (in that I can still use them if T-Mobile goes under and AT&T doesn't keep the 1700 band, or if I move outside of T-Mobile coverage).
It being stable is definitely a plus for me...how's the build quality? I'd be getting a Otterbox case for it regardless, but still.
And yeah, apps definitely don't matter seeing as how I'll have the Streak 7 to accompany any phone, and there aren't really any apps I can think of that I absolutely need to have on my phone.

Build quality is kind of a gamble. The first unit I got had an off set screen (when closed, the screen didn't align with the rest of the phone) and I have heard of other people having issues with theirs and having to get replacements. But the one I have now is perfect, and it's great. It feels solid and I'm not worried about the sliding mechanism for the keyboard breaking anytime soon. Without a doubt, with the Otterbox, you'd have a tank in your hands. Sorry. I'm not sure this stuff I'm saying is helping out, let me know if there's something more in depth you want to know.

sur3nd1p1ty said:
Build quality is kind of a gamble. The first unit I got had an off set screen (when closed, the screen didn't align with the rest of the phone) and I have heard of other people having issues with theirs and having to get replacements. But the one I have now is perfect, and it's great. It feels solid and I'm not worried about the sliding mechanism for the keyboard breaking anytime soon. Without a doubt, with the Otterbox, you'd have a tank in your hands. Sorry. I'm not sure this stuff I'm saying is helping out, let me know if there's something more in depth you want to know.
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Your posts definitely help - only have a few things to ask now:
-Battery life? Moderate daily use, mostly on wifi with 3g otherwise.
-Screen quality? I know it's AMOLED, but is it any good, and how is it in sunlight?
-Signal and call quality - noticeably better or worse than any other phones you've used?